Beer delivery trucks and kegs of locally produced craft beers can be seen throughout the Tri-Cities.

Mountain Hops to serve as guide to area craft beer

Just a few short years ago, the Tri-Cities were considered rather dry when it came to craft breweries.

You had Jonesborough’s Depot Street Brewing acting as a satellite location for beer lovers, taking upon their shoulders the business and weight of the admiration of all of those who wanted something other than macro brewing.

Well, these craft beer lovers were collectively acting as somewhat of a sleeping giant.

Now, that giant has risen. And he’s thirsty.

To quench the thirst of the public, many of whom who’ve spent their years traveling back to the more matured and developed beer scene in Asheville and Western North Carolina, small businesses have been popping up over the last two years.

Johnson City now has the Johnson City Brewing Company, Yee-Haw Brewing, JRH Brewing and whispers of other tap rooms opening soon. Bristol has the Bristol Brewing Company, Studio Brew and the Holston River Brewing Company. Kingsport has Sleepy Owl Brewery and the Gypsy Circus Cider Company. Just over the state line, you have Wolf Hills Brewing and The Damascus Brewery as Southwest Virginia options.

Of course, Depot Street is still up and running, and, arguably, doing better than ever, having been a big portion of why this is all taking place.

If you’re looking for a place to drink only locally-produced suds, then you certainly have your options.

But, you might need a little bit of guidance. This is where Mountain Hops comes in — aiming to serve as a guide for craft beer and cider news and information. We’re proud to stick to our tag of providing you with “news, brews and grooves.”

Many within this local industry have referred to what they’re seeing as a “movement,” so let this publication serve as guide for that movement.

While there’s a lot to share in regards to the brews being produced by these local artists, there’s a lot of periphery business related to the movement. Food trucks and music, as two examples, are big pieces of what tap rooms are about. We don’t want to just let you know where you can drink, but we also want to help you with the scene you’ll encounter when enjoying that beer.

Of course, with the popularity of craft beer on the rise, breweries aren’t the only places where these suds can be found. There are growlers to be filled at wine and liquor shops, grocery stores and even gas stations. This significant amount of convenience might leave you overwhelmed with decisions over what and where you should drink. We at Mountain Hops would love to help you simplify those decisions, all while telling the stories of the crafty industry folk who each have important tales to tell.

It’s rare that these artisan craft producers started out with a goal in mind to make beer and make beer only, so we want to share with you the stories about what they did to find their way to brewing.